The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1887-06-25
THE MAIpEN,s soLAcE.
Interesting Information Concerning the
Genuine Spruce Gum.

Genuine Spruce Gum.
A lump Of clear, genuine spruce gum;
fresh and fragrant from its native forest,
Z not 70 be despised as a chewing sub
stance, and II every body could get tho
real article, instead of cheap. adulter-
ated stuff, the army Of chewers would
be vastly augmented. The natural gum
is said by physicians to be beneficial to
the teeth, and IL is certainly great
improvement on tobacco The woods
men bring out considerable quantities
OF gum, sometimes packed in pretty
miniature barrels, which they whittle
and carve from blocks of white pine or
cedar during idle hours by the camp
fire, rs presents for their friends, but
there are people who make a business
OF gathering gum, and in certain Sec
tions Of the spruce country 1t pays well.
Most of the spruce gum handled by
the dealers comes from Canada and
Northern Maine, while Vermont and
New Hampshire contribute moderate
quantity to the total yield. The best
gum comes from no particular section,
but always from the biggest spruce
trees, and It begins to run in July or
August, when, in these high latitudcs
the sun becomes so hot as to crack the
bark. On the limbs, in the crotches,
and even in the trunk of the spruce,
the molten gum forms during the heat
of summer in all sorts of fantastic
shapes, and when cold weather sets in
it becomes hard. The first year aftei
it's run the gum is white and pitchy,
then it begins to turn amber and red,
ard the second yearit is fit to "pick"
for the market, although it is better il
allowed to remain on the trees until the
third year. After the third season the
gum remains in the same state for sew
cral years, and then begins to "turn
DID," as the pickers say, and the con-
sumer complains that it "chews hard"
and crumbles up. A little more age
makes it dark-colored and bitter, and
then its value is gone.
Up in Canada much of the gum is
picked in the autumn, beginning as
early rs October, but there, as in Maine,
the best time for the work is during the
deep SHOWS of the winter, when snow
shoes are used, or in the early spring,
when man can travel along at a lively
rate on the heavy crust, above the
underbrush. The pickers are provided
with long poles, on the end of which is
fastened a sharp chisel. and UNDER
meath that cup to receive the gum as
it is Clipped off. The cup holds from a
pint to quart, and when full it is
emptied into a long bag which the
packer carries slung to his back like q
knapsack. These gum harvesters erect
huts in the woods when far distant from
settlement or logging camp, and
stay from two days to a week on trip.
When they have secured as much as
they can ''tote' they come out, and
then the women and children have the
tedious Job of scraping each and every
lump free from bark and moss. The
clean, bright article offered for sale in
the shops looks very much different
from the brown nuggets in the picker s
bag, although occasionally u clear,
shiny piece is found on the limb of q
large tree.
1t is the cleaning of the gum that
makes frst-class article expensive.
An ordinary picker usually earns fair
days wages, although in localities that
have not been explored he sometimes
..strikes it rich" have known man
to gather thirty dollars worth of gum
in one day.
There are two or three firms in Maino
which buy large quantities of gum from
lumbermen and pickers for the purpose
of refining it, as they say. But, as a
general rule, the refining consists of
adulteration with rosin. They throw
the gum into u big vat, bark, moss and
all, and boil it to about the consistency
of molasses, skimming off the impurities
as they rise to the surface. Then, if the
purpose be to adulterate, some lard or
grease and lot of rOsin is thrown in,
with sometimes little sugar. The mix
ture is stirred until thick, and then
poured out on slab, where, while it is
yet hot, it is rolled out in sheet about
quarter of an inch thick, and after
ward cut with a steel die into pieces
half an inch wide and three-quarters of
an inch long. These pieces are wrapped
in colorcd tissue paper and packed in
. wooden boxes-two hundred pieces to q
box. This is the so-called 'patent"
gum. Tons of it are sold south and
west of us, but here on the verge of the
primeval forest it is a drug in the
market. Bangor Me. Cor. N. y Sun.